Surfing, as a sport, has attracted enthusiasts all over the world, and many of them travel long distances to locations where ideal surfing conditions exist. Particularly prized by expert surfers are the waves called "the chute" or "the pipeline", that is, waves which move with sufficient velocitY and height that, when they encounter an upwardly sloping bottom of certain configuration, curl forward over the advancing base of the wave to form a tunnel, inside, at the mouth or on top of which expert surfers move laterally across the face of the wave, seeking to keep pace with the formation of the tunnel without being caught in the collapsing portion thereof.
The formation of such waves under natural conditions requires a comparatively rare combination of factors, including wind of a certain constancy of velocity and direction, and waves of a certain velocity, direction and height, approaching a shore having a certain bottom slope and configuration. Apparently there are not many places in the world with such a favorable combination of characteristics, and surfers will travel thousands of miles to reach locations, many of them in remote areas, where such conditions exist.
Because such waves depend upon a favorable coincidence of several factors, there are few places where succeeding waves can be counted upon to be uniform for extended periods, and this militates against surfing becoming a competitive sport, that is, one in which different surfers can be rated on their skill and performance under identical conditions.
If one were to place surfing waves on a spectrum of beginning to expert, the parent invention focuses on forming a moving wave shape that will consistently produce a riding surface prized by experts. The present invention, on the other hand, produces wave-shapes of the same kind as that of the parent invention but which are stationary with respect to the physical surroundings and, in addition, also produces different stationary wave-shapes prized by beginners, i.e., non-breaking wave shapes with no whitewater turbulence thereon, as it is much easier for a beginner to learn and maintain balance and turn upon the gentle slope of a non-breaking wave than upon a spilling or plunging breaker.
Several attempts have been made to form such waves artificially, but none to date have been able to produce the wave-shapes as produced by the parent and present inventions, as an examination of some representative references will reveal.
Matrai U.S. Pat. No. 3,005,207, issued Oct. 24, 1961, discloses a swimming pool with an oscillating paddle in a deep chamber which provides simulated ocean waves for the enjoyment of swimmers and bathers in both deep and shallow portions of the pool, respectively. The structure and operation of Matrai has no relavance to the present invention.
Dexter U.S. Pat. No. 3,473,334, issued Oct. 21, 1969, discloses a wavemaking apparatus which depends upon the release of a large volume of water into a pool, with the wave shape being created by the shape of the water outlet or be the contour of the pool bottom. Although Dexter can produce breaking waves --"breakers"--they are not the tunnel waves desired by expert surfers, nor the stationary inclined water surface which permits other types of water skimming activities, and the structure and operation of Dexter has no relevance to the present invention.
Andersen U.S. Pat. No. 3,477,233, issued Nov. 11, 1969, discloses a wave-making machine for producing gravity waves on the surface of a liquid, for use in mixing liquids, breaking up ice formations, etc. The structure and operation of Andersen '233 has no relevance to the present invention.
Koster U.S. Pat. No. 3,562,823, issued Feb. 16, 1971, discloses a wave-making machine for swimming pools, which depends upon the back and forth movement of a vane in a pool of water to create a wave, and utilizes a resonance effect to minimize energy usage and obtain desired large waves. The structure and operation of Koster has no relevance to the present invention.
Richard et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,789,612, issued Feb. 5, 1974, discloses a method of wave generation which depends upon periodic up-and-down movements of a massive body in water, coupled with shaped bottom and shoreline contours, to create waves of desired shape and size, perhaps utilizing a resonance principle. The structure and operation of Richard et al has no relevance to the present invention.
Mehaute U.S. Pat. No. 3,802,697, issued Apr. 9, 1974, discloses a wave generator for simulated surfriding which depends upon the movement of a triangular ramp-shaped structure through a body of water, which is lifted up and over the ramp, creating a "hydraulic jump" wave on the surface. The structure and operation of Mehaute has no relevance to the present invention, in that the present invention does not require a "hydraulic jump" wave in order to function. Moreover, Mehaute has no way, implicitly or explicitly, to create an inclined surface on a body of water that will permit surfriding without producing a "hydraulic jump" wave.
Andersen U.S. Pat. No. 4,201,496, issued May 6, 1980, discloses a further improvement on the wave-making machine of Andersen '233, above, which depends upon the periodic up-and-down movement of a massive body in water to create the desired waves, perhaps using a resonance effect. The structure and operation of Anderson '496 has no relevance to the present invention.
Baker U.S. Pat. No. 4,276,664, issued Jul. 7, 1981, discloses an apparatus for wave making which also, like Andersen '496, depends upon periodic up-and-down movements of a massive body in water to create desirable waves, perhaps exploiting a resonance effect. The structure and operation of Baker has no relevance to the present invention.
Bastenhof U.S. Pat. No. 4,522,535, issued Jun. 11, 1985, discloses a surf wave generator which depends upon the release of a large volume of water into a pool, with the wave shape being created by the contour of the pool bottom. The structure and operation of Bastenhof has no relevance to the present invention, as he has no means of creating a stably-shaped body of water with a permanently inclined surface thereon.
Schuster et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,719, issued Sept. 10, 1985, discloses a method and pneumatic apparatus which, like Bastenhof, also depends upon the release of a large volume of water into a pool for surf wave production, with the wave shape being created by the contour of the pool bottom. The structure and operation of Schuster has no relevance to the present invention, as he has no means of creating a stably-shaped body of water with a permanently inclined surface thereon.
The wave-making structure disclosed in Forsman U.S. Pat. No. 3,913,332, issued Oct. 21, 1975, is perhaps more closely related in structure to two embodiments of the parent and present invention than any of the previously discussed references. Forsman discloses a continuous wave surfing facility, which uses a wave-forming generator consisting of a single or double plow-shaped blade moving through an annularly-shaped body of water to form surfing waves of desired shape and size. Both single and double wave-forming blades are disclosed, propelled by a vehicle which moves along annular rails, submerged or otherwise, and generates a continuous wave for each blade which is suitable for surfing. Multiple generators can be employed to produce serial waves so that several surfers can enjoy the facility simultaneously. Provision is made for changing wave characteristics by changing the horizontal angle of the blades relative to the direction of motion, the leading edge of the blade, whether double or single, being hinged.
However, Forsman does not recognize, either explicitly or implicitly, some of the problems solved by the present and parent inventions, among which are the generation of tunnel waves, either standing or moving, and the generation of an unchanging inclined surface on a stably-shaped stationary body of water. In fact, the structure of Forsman, and the description of its operation, indicate that the waves generated by the Forsman generator are different than most of those generated by the present or parent invention, and they are generated in a different way. Forsman specifically describes his waves as decreasing in height the more remote they are from the generator, with the result that:
"higher and more challenging wave height will be found close to the (generator) while less challenging waves will be found away from the (generator) thereby providing a range from beginner to expert. A skilled surfer can choose any point along the wave and easily move to reach it by moving sideways along the wave, as well as riding high up on the wave or at its base." (Forsman, col. 4, lines 39-46).
With the wave shapes generated by applicant's tunnel-wave generator (both moving and stationary), however, the more skilled surfer would seek to ride further away from the generator, at that precise point on the wave which would place him at the mouth of, or inside, the tunnel or "pipeline". However, not even an expert, and still less a novice, would seek to ride in the region where the wave was breaking, which is beyond the end of the tunnel. Further, Forsman has no means of generating a wave-shape with an inclined surface thereon.